The best sports action over the holidays

While the winter holidays are used as a much deserved break from the fast-paced life that is university, what better way to waste hours (or days) than vegging out on the couch. Hopefully with built in food and beverage devices à la George Costanza — and enjoying the plethora of sports that are available to you. Below is a chronological calendar of some major sporting events occurring over the break (starting when Brock officially shuts down on Dec. 21):

NFL Week 16 & 17 (Dec. 22—24, Dec. 30):

The last two weeks of the NFL regular season will set up what is bound to be an incredible postseason. NFC favourites such as the L.A. Rams and New Orleans Saints will surely be preparing for what hopes to be deep playoff runs, while the AFC favourite Kansas City Chiefs will be hopeful for their first super bowl victory since 1970.

NBA Christmas Day (Dec. 25):

This long-time holiday tradition pitts 10 of the biggest NBA markets against each other for 13 straight hours of basketball. Wait…where are the first place Raptors?

Milwaukee Bucks at New York Knicks — 12:00 p.m.

Oklahoma City Thunder at Houston Rockets — 3:00 p.m.

Philadelphia 76ers at Boston Celtics — 5:30 p.m.

Los Angeles Lakers at Golden State Warriors — 8:00 p.m.

Portland Trail Blazers at Utah Jazz — 10:30 p.m.

IIHF World Juniors (Dec. 26 — Jan. 5)

The 43rd annual World Juniors will be played on Canada’s west coast, with Victoria and Vancouver playing host. Canada will look to repeat as champions, and win their 18th gold in team history.

NCAAF Orange & Cotton Bowl (Dec. 29)

These two semifinal bowls will take place in Miami and Arlington, respectively, with the winner of each bowl advancing to the National Championship game in Santa Clara on Jan. 7. The Orange Bowl features Alabama and Oklahoma, while Clemson and Notre Dame will play in the Cotton Bowl.

NHL Winter Classic (Jan. 1)

This year’s Winter Classic features the Boston Bruins and the Chicago Blackhawks taking to the outdoor rink of the 80,000 seat Notre Dame Stadium in Indiana. This marks the third time the Bruins have played in this New Years Day game, while the Blackhawks will be making their fourth appearance.

NFL Wild Card Weekend (Jan. 5-6)

Stop dreading the fastly approaching new semester with two pairs of NFL playoffs, with all four Wild Card games being held on the final weekend of the break.